State Minister Joseph Harmon has pledged that government will uphold collective bargaining agreements brokered with the public service union.
“Our offices are open to you and we want to establish a relationship of respect and mutual understanding and I want to emphasise the government’s approach and the government’s adherence to collective bargaining agreements,” Harmon was quoted as saying by the Ministry of the Presidency during a meeting on Thursday with senior members and representatives of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU).
“Once they are entered into, it is our obligation to, at all times, ensure that those agreements are upheld,” Harmon added.
According to a Ministry of the Presidency statement, Harmon met with the union representatives at the GPSU’s Headquarters, where proposed wage increases for public servants, boosting the morale of public servants and a stronger relationship with the government were discussed.
The meeting was held to update Harmon on the outcomes of the union’s last Statutory Executive Meeting as well as several issues that have been pending for a number of years under the former administration, the statement added.
In its first national budget just shortly after taking office, the APNU+AFC coalition had awarded marginal increases to public servants although it did not consult the union. The union had criticised successive PPP/C administrations for arbitrarily imposing increases annually.
Harmon, the statement said, noted that a new government was in place and it was the President’s and the government’s wish that a stronger relationship be built with the workers’ representative body.
“I want to express our happiness at being here today. A relationship is not just you coming to the employer but the employer must also come to you. We want you to take this visit here as a significant change in the relationship between the GPSU and the Government of Guyana. We are your employers and neighbours,” he said.
At the conclusion of the 40-minute meeting, Harmon gave his commitment and that of the government to address the concerns that were raised. He noted that public servants must be able to work in a happy and safe environment and the government will ensure that this is achieved.
The GPSU, in turn, the statement said, also gave its commitment to fostering a good relationship with the new government, provided it continues to be willing to listen to and address issues facing public servants.
Harmon was accompanied by Permanent Secre-tary of the Department of Public Service, Reginald Brotherson and Head of Political Affairs at the Ministry of the Presidency Fredrick McWilfred, while the GPSU’s delegation was led by First Vice-President Mortimer Livan and included Second Vice-President, Dawn Gardener and General Secretary Kemton Alexander.
